Johnson will not wake up on a cold morning in late January 2013 as the new president of the United States, but if things break right the only candidate enthusiastically in support of our right to gamble on sports and bet online can make things uncomfortable for Barack Obama and Mitt Romney in a few states.

“I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t think I could have an impact,” Johnson told Covers.com in a recent interview. “And I think I can win if I can get into the debates.”

The Backstory

Getting banned from the Republican debates last winter basically slammed the door shut on his bid to win the GOP nomination, so in late December the former two-term governor of New Mexico did the only honorable thing –– he up and quit. A little more than four months later Johnson’s break with the Republican Party became irrevocable when Libertarians nominated him for president at their convention at the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas.

It’s no surprise that Republicans treated Johnson like a picnic skunk. He thinks that if the GOP wants government out of the hair of business, then it also has no business snooping into people’s bedrooms.

“There is a certain Republican dogma I can’t accept,” says Johnson. “Homophobia is one of those issues.”

But if Johnson has a certain appeal to the ever-expanding segment of the population that believes that homosexuals should be allowed to marry, chances are close to 100 percent that his policies on guns (have as many as you want), Medicare (cut it in half), Medicaid (cut it in half) and Social Security (cut it in half) will be hard to swallow.

“The Libertarian candidate,” said Johnson, “is going to be the only one talking about gay rights and gun rights, about slashing welfare and warfare.”

Governor Veto

Johnson was known as Governor Veto during his eight-year stay in New Mexico (1995-2003), and he’ll tell anyone who’ll listen that he vetoed more bills (200 in his first six months in office) than all the governors of the other 49 states combined. He was generally popular in New Mexico, but term limits choked off his political career and he spent most of last decade participating in triathlons and climbing mountains.

There is no model for third-party candidates running for president. Democrats and Republicans have super-glued the locks that need to be picked by outsiders trying to have an impact, and it will be hard for Johnson to gain traction even for a voting public that may be disillusioned with Obama and views Romney as a clueless visitor from another planet.

Life for third-party candidates has been cold and lonely since Teddy Roosevelt formed the Bull Moose Party and grabbed 88 electoral votes (on 27 percent of the popular vote) in 1912. The Strom Thurmond-led Dixiecrat Party convinced more than a million racists to vote for it in 1948. Two decades ago Ross Perot, who was bascially a bobblehead doll with DNA, actually led in one poll before fading to less than 20 percent in the election, though he may have helped deny George H.W. Bush a second term.Where the rubber hits the road

Johnson told Covers that his chances of becoming a factor against Obama and Romney hinge on getting enough poll support (15 percent nationally) to be included in what is expected to be a series of three televised debates this fall. It’s a classic Catch-22 that almost all third-party candidates face - they can’t get support without being in the televised debates, and they can’t get in the debates without showing a certain degree of support.

Libertarians were clearly hoping that the withdrawal of like-minded Ron Paul from the Republican race would result in Paul’s backers moving to Johnson. No such luck. While Johnson has been consistently complimentary toward the Texan, Paul doesn’t return the favor, even though doing so might give Johnson a base of supporters that he might be able to build on.

When asked Johnson if he feels that Ron Paul sees Johnson as a threat to Paul’s son (Rand, a politically ambitious senator from Kentucky), Johnson paused a moment and then said, “I can’t say that. I’ll let you draw your own conclusions.”

The campaign trail

So Johnson soldiers on through the late spring and early summer, hoping to use free media to get his name in the political conversation as much as possible. He’s polling at six percent in Wisconsin, nine percent in Arizona. He’s been endorsed by a few dozen academics, and by Vegas magician Penn Jillette. It’s no shock that Johnson’s pro-pot legalization stance landed the endorsement of Willie Nelson.

And if just thinking about the government’s antiquated and hypocritical stance on sports betting or online gambling gets your blood boiling, Johnson makes the following pitch for your vote: “If I’m elected president and Congress sends me a bill legalizing online gambling, I’ll sign it. And if Congress sends me a bill legalizing sports betting, I’ll sign it.”

Can’t be much clearer than that.

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“If I’m elected president and Congress sends me a bill legalizing online gambling, I’ll sign it. And if Congress sends me a bill legalizing sports betting, I’ll sign it.”
While I agree with his opinion on sports betting, the above statment shows how delusional Johnson is. He has no power and is done in the political world. Steve Christi on the other hand is making things interesting. My comments seem harsh..but they are true.

Sooner or later we'll need a viable 3rd party because both parties have consolidated their power to the point of no return. What's left is a duopoly form of government government set up for the corporation, by the corporation that just takes turns screwing up, wasting our money and further choking-off our personal liberties.

What you see is what you get each year from Pittsburgh, which builds through the draft, doesn’t sign a lot of free agents and basically comes at you. How much Ben Roethlisberger has left is a question asked every September given the number of hits he takes. The biggest change will be at defensive coordinator, where legend Dick Lebeau is gone – which may mean the LBs will be freer to attack the pocket.

The Vikes have Adrian Peterson back and things seem to have calmed down a bit in Minnesota. But then again, Mike Wallace has been on board for only a few months. Vikes are looking for a huge Year 2 improvement from Teddy Bridgewater and if they get it they can make things sticky in the North.

In 2014/15 the Steelers were 1-3 SU/ATS in the preseason and in 2013/14 they were 0-4 SU/ATS. After missing the playoffs in 2013/14, Pittsburgh returned last year only to lose 30-17 to the Ravens in the Wildcard round. Mike Tomlin has clearly not been very worried about winning in the preseason the last few years.

Last year the Vikes went 4-0 SU and 3-1 ATS in the preseason, after going 1-3 SU/ATS in 2013/14 and 1-3 SU/ATS in 2012/13. For a team which is desperately trying to get back to the playoffs, the preseason suddenly becomes a lot more important.

There are many players on Minnesota which have something to prove, while Pittsburgh will surely be happy to just go through the motions and leave Canton without any significant injuries.

Minnesota would seem to be the more motivated team in this one, consider laying the short points.

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